1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to electrical connectors and more particularly to resilient beam terminals or engaging square posts soldered to printed circuit boards.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Electrical connectors for use in establishing continuity between terminal posts mounted on a panel board or printed circuit board are conventional. For example the connector disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,159,158 is used to interconnect discrete wires to discrete terminal posts mounted on 0.100 or 0.156 inch centers on a panel board or printed circuit board. When used under the conditions for which these connectors were intended, excellent performance is achieved. These connectors provide a low cost interconnection system which is especially important because large numbers of such connectors are required for use in systems in the electronics industry.
Conventional connectors such as those disclosed in the above-mentioned patent employ resilient beam structure for engaging the surfaces of terminal posts, having a rectilinear or square cross section. When contact is established with the conductive metal forming such terminal posts, excellent performance can be achieved. However, under certain conditions the surface of these square terminals can become contaminated. For example, when terminal posts soldered to a printed circuit board are employed, it is not uncommon for the solder flux and contamination to build up along the side of the post from the area immediately adjacent the printed circuit board over the entire terminal post. The physics underlying such soldered interconnections generally result in a greater build-up of solder flux along each face of the post than would occur adjacent the corners of the post. Indeed the minimum thickness of solder flux would be at the corners of the square posts. Some users do not remove this undesirable solder flux contamination buildup from terminal posts and a conventional resilient beam terminal would engage the solder flux or contamination, at its maximum thickness, rather than the underlying terminal posts. Indeed when conventional resilient beam terminals are mated with conventional square posts having a solder flux buildup, high resistance is generally encountered and opens may occur. It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a resilient beam contact which can form a suitable contact with a terminal post having a square cross section even if considerable solder flux is present on the exterior of the terminal posts in the vicinity of the contact area.